The Political Influence of the British-Israel ... - Origin of Nations

20History, accompanied the prince of Wales on his tour of the East, in 1862. In 1865, the PalestineExploration Fund was founded as a result to attempt to validate biblical history - an invaluableasset to British-Israel‘s literal reading of the Hebrew Scriptures. The most significant aspect ofDean Stanley's contribution to the Palestine Exploration Fund and its work, aside from his role inits foundation, was his commitment, with Sir George Grove, to a scientific approach. He alsoinsisted that it be non-religious and non-political, and his efforts to bring into the foundingCommittee not only representatives of all three major branches of the Church of England (HighChurch, Evangelicals, and Broad Church), representatives of the Catholic and Jewishcommunities within Britain. However, most of the members were fans of Judaeo-Christiantradition hoping the excavation s would validate the bible and Dr William Thomson, Archbishopof York, on addressing the fund stated ’Our reason for turning to Palestine is that Palestine is ourcountry. I have used that expression before and I refuse to adopt any other.’ 142 British-Israelsupported the Palestine Exploration Fund in the hope it would reveal the Ark of the Covenant.Apart from being the holiest place on earth, Palestine was a geographical junction between Eastand West and a natural focal point for the empire with the Suez canal, the road to India and oilfields. Palestine was captured from the Ottomans by Mehmet Ali, in 1830, but he was allied toFrance on whom he depended for political, military and economic advisors. 143 Edom, in biblicalprophecy, was represented as being in possession of the Holy places before the return of Israel.John Wilson had equated Edom with Spain as several cities were named after dukes or cities ofEdom (which he thought might account for bitter religious rivalries) but now Turkey governed allthe Holy sites in the middle-east, Muslim included, and British-Israel equated Edom with theOttoman empire hence the deposition of the Sultan could only be actioned by anglo-saxon Israelin the form of England and America ‘I will inflict vengeance upon Edom by the hand of Mypeople Israel‘ (eze. 25:14). 144 In 1902, noting the stormy political situation in the Balkansexasperating the Turkish, British-Israel declared on Palestine ‘The land must be cleansed, and theintruder turned out of it, to allow of the return of the People of Zion’ and , in 1905, afterexperiencing revolutionary unrest in Albania and Macedonia equated the Turkish with thedescendants of the Assyrians.In return France received territorial concessions with an eye on the Red sea and routes to India.The Russians were also interested in Palestine and allied themselves to the Ottomans. Gog inEzekial had an eye for invading Palestine hence British-Israel associated this prophecy withRussia and the political Eastern Question of the late 1890’s was whether Russia or Englandwould have Constantinople after the disintegration of Turkey. British-Israel applauded theJapanese defeat of Russia, in 1904, attributing this to the Anglo-Japanese alliance andcontradictorily, deemed the 1907 Anglo-Russian convention for determining operating borders amonument us agreement. British-Israel had the answer in ‘Thy seed shall possess the gate of hisenemies’ (Genesis 22.17).“The Gates” were very important to British-Israel and Constantinople was the most importantgate. Possession of the gates meant power to the British Empire. In 1919, British-IsraeliteAdmiral Lord Fisher said ‘Do you know that there are five keys to the world - the Straits ofDover, the Straits of Gibraltar, the Suez Canal, the Straits of Malacca, and the Cape of GoodHope? And every one of these keys we hold ’. 145 The Channel Islands kept a check on the French.142 Barbara Tuckman, Bible and Sword, (London: Redman, 1957), p. 1.143 Michael Polowetzky, Jerusalem Recovered, (London: Praeger, 1995), p.10.144 John Wilson, Lectures on Our Israelitish Origin, (London: Nisbet, 1876), p. 109.145 EN Dixon, The Divine Plan in the Government of the World proved by the Great European War, 2nd.edtn. (London: Imperial British-Israel Association, 1919), p. 13.